Im buing an AI chatbot with human characteristics doesn't seem so ridiculous in a time when such technology is showing uncanny steps forward in its ability to learn and adapt, with some reports of their sentience verging on the most pessimistic predictions of sci-fi. If you're aware of their existence, the progression shown by generative language models like ChatGPT seems to have come on leaps and bounds, as the Microsoft-backed OpenAI has released a version of its creation into the public domain and has been all the rage.
AI like this, in the most basic terms, consumes information it's been fed – mainly from the internet – and, via a complex algorithm, regurgitates an answer in response to a prompt. The AI uses the information at itsis why it is emerging as such a powerful tool, one that is even being integrated into online search systems that its creators hope may rival a behemoth like Google. But this is also a sign of the limits of this technology.
